Paterosari
Paterosari is a village in Kuningan, West Java, Indonesia, located at the foot of Mount Ciremai, tucked in a densely-foliaged valley of pine trees. It is separated into 6 hamlets: Central Paterosari, Panempritan, Prenjakmulya, Caraka Badiran, Cirobi, and Cibubut. Paterosari's main exports are milk, honey, tea, cloves, nutmeg, vegetables, and yams. The area is roughly ±1.000.000 hectares with a population of ±5000, with most of its residents working as farmers and factory workers. The village is shaped like a bird, hence the general theme of birds. Toponomy The name Paterosari comes from the village's original name, Vedersari, a compound of the Dutch word veder which means 'feather' and the Indonesian/Sundanese word sari which means 'essence' (the latter, however, also denotes the legend of Ki Buyut Sari). It is thought that it is largely attributed to the local Sundanese's unfamiliarity with the letter v'', thus over time, the pronunciation shifted from its original pronunciation until it ultimately was officially named so in 1936. Before the colonists' arrival, the village initially had no name, as the names of the hamlets preceded their unification (and the area now known as central Paterosari was formerly nothing but wilderness). The De Haven Family, which were the colonists that were largely responsible for the founding of the town in the 1800s, named the town Vedersari out of their fondness for the local birds. History Pre-1500s Not much was known about the area before the 1500s except that it was nothing but wilderness. Historical accounts speak of the legend of Ki Buyut Sari, a hermit skilled in the magical arts that lived and meditated in the woods and was said to be protected by a creature with the head of an eagle and the body of a leopard called the Paksi Maung (later known as the symbol of Paterosari). A battle ensued between him and his adversary, Nyai Hideung, and the Paksi Maung was killed. Because of the bloodshed, the spirits of the woods banished the two into the spirit world. Nyai Hideung's daughter Dyah Gandeng came to look for her some years after and met with the spirit of the Paksi Maung, who took her to the spirit world to meet her mother. Nyai Hideung tells her daughter that they will never see each other again, but promise her that they can still communicate by leaving a message in a vessel hung from the trees. This tradition became known as Gandengan to honor Dyah Gandeng, in which people leave messages written on a piece of paper placed in bottles made of earthenware throughout the path that leads to Ki Buyut Sari's place of meditation in Caraka Badiran, up the hills of Taman Gagak. 1700s In the early 1720s, Abu Nusar and Siti Al Rahma, Arabian explorers, scholars, and traders traveled around Mount Ciremai seeking enlightenment and a place to stay. Abu Nusar was fascinated by the flora and fauna of the forests, being particularly enamored by the Javanese hawk-eagle. His wife and their horse wandered around when they were abandoned by Abu Nusar, who was busy chasing after the bird. Siti Al Rahma eventually found a place to lay down by the creek and decided they were to stay there. The school became Pesantren Al Nusar, which they founded alongside and villages were built along the path to the school. This became known as the village of Cirobi. 1800s By the 1860s, Paterosari was mostly wilderness except for Cirobi. Quintijn de Haven, a Dutch plantation manager and liaison to local powers, was given some land in the area upon his retirement by the government. When he died in 1858, he passed it on to his widow, Sara de Haven, and their three children became the pioneers of the village, along with families and groups intending to start businesses in the area, mainly through lumber and the planting of nutmeg and cloves. Kobus de Haven, a teaching priest, established the church, while Kasper de Haven, a businessman, acted as a contractor and developed the village. The youngest son, Klaas de Haven, a scholar of botany, studied the local flora and built the parks and gardens, one of which was the house where he lived with his wife, Rita Woetamani I, Taman Gagak. This was during the end of the Cultivation System Era (''cultuurstelsel) and the lumber, cloves, and nutmeg were the prime exports, so roads and plantations were constructed. The Liberal Period in 1870 fired up the development of Paterosari and it became a budding village with agriculture as its biggest industry, and it attracted a few Europeans who bought lands and built residences in the residential area of the town to escape the hustle and bustle of bigger cities during the rule of then-governor general, Ludolph Anne Jan Wilt Sloet van de Beele. Central Paterosari, Prenjakmulya, and Caraka Badiran were the focus of the colonists' developments, while the arrival of people gave birth to the Cibubut and Panempritan hamlets intended for agriculture (alongside Cirobi, which predated the other agricultural hamlets). The founders were thus the following: * Delmonte Family of Cibubut, producers of nutmeg. * De Rouw Family of Panempritan, producers of cloves and founders of the music school. * De Haven Family of Caraka Badiran, as the societal pioneers in religion, architecture, and tourism. * Eikenboom Family of Prenjakmulya, as lumberers. * Vervloet Family in Central Paterosari, as traders. 1900s Development stopped during the Great Depression, and much of the town went into hard times with its mental institutions suffering. Most of the local Europeans fled or went missing, and the few that remained were pro-Indonesians. Development started picking up a bit in the 1950s, with more Indonesians coming to live in the area from bigger cities. A conglomerate took hold of the town in the 1970s and fully developed its industrial, agricultural, commercial, and residential areas, resurrecting much of the old institutions and preserving the architecture. The conglomerate has fallen on hard times since 1998, however, so the state of Paterosari has deteriorated. Administration Paterosari is further divided into six hamlets (or dusun). The village is headed by a Kepala Desa (village head), with each hamlet headed by a Kepala Dusun (hamlet head). Assisting them are the Sekretaris Desa (village secretary), Kaur/Kepala Urusan Umum (head of general affairs), Kaur/Kepala Urusan Ekonomi Pembangunan (head of economic development affairs), Kaur/Kepala Urusan Kesejahteraan Rakyat (head of people's welfare affairs), and the 11 members of the Badan Perwakilan Desa (village representative body). Central Paterosari The administrative center and the commercial area of the village, located at the 'tail' of Paterosari. This and Caraka Badiran are the first areas to be developed during colonial times. Though most of the shop houses are modern, many of the original shop houses built in the early 20th century remain. Also located in this area are the Paterosari Village Hall, Puskesmas Paterosari, the public schools (SMA Paterosari 01, SMP Paterosari 01 and SD Paterosari 01), Angelica Clinic, and the mosque. The big estate was once owned by the Vervloet Family. Prenjakmulya The industrial area of the village, where lumber, textile, and tea are processed, located at the 'right wing' of the Paterosari. Also located in this area are the Pasar Prenjakmulya and the campgrounds. The area has many bar-winged prinia birds (perenjak). The big estate was once owned by the Eikenboom Family. Caraka Badiran The residential area of the village, where most of the original neighborhoods were built, located at the center of Paterosari. : Taman Merak, containing a public park, historical buildings, Caraka Badiran School, and the Makuta Mutih Library. Named so for its population of green peafowl. The big estate once belonged to the De Haven Family. : Taman Gagak, containing the cemeteries, the priest's cottage, and the Paterosari Christian Church, named so for its population of slender-billed crows. The big estate belongs to the De Haven Family. : Taman Bangau, containing mostly historic houses and newly developed ones, named so for its population of milky storks. ::* RT 03/RW 01: Van Haji House. Cirobi The agricultural area of the village, where tea are grown, located at the 'head' of Paterosari. Also located in this area are the Pesantren Al Nusar and Puskesmas Cirobi. The area is mountainous and is not very populated, and the only area to not be named after a certain bird (despite having the most populations of birds among the other areas). Cibubut The agricultural area of the village, where nutmeg are grown, located at the bottom of the 'left wing' of Paterosari. Also located in this area is SD Paterosari 02 and Sanatorium Sare Sehat Sinyo Schrijnemakers. The area is rather swampy and has many greater coucal birds (bubut). The big estate once belonged to the Delmonte Family. Panempritan The agricultural area of the village, where cloves are grown, located at the top of the 'left wing' of Paterosari. Also located in this area are SD Paterosari 03, Peternakan Susu Paterosari, and Panti Wreda Dara Merdeka. The area has many open fields for grazing and has many Javan munia finch birds (emprit). The big estate once belonged to the De Rouw Family. Facilities Schools Formal Public Schools :High Schools * SMA Paterosari 01 :Secondary Schools * SMP Paterosari 01 :Elementary Schools * SD Paterosari 01 * SD Paterosari 02 * SD Paterosari 03 Formal Private Schools :High Schools * SMA Caraka Badiran :Secondary Schools * SMP Caraka Badiran :Elementary Schools * SD Caraka Badiran Formal Religious Schools :Madrasah Aliyah * MA Al Nusar :Madrasah Tsanawiyah * MTs Al Nusar :Madrasah Ibtidaiyah * MI Al Nusar :Raudhatul Athfal * RA Al Nusar Non-Formal Schools/Courses :Kindergarten :Playgroup :TPA Medical facilities Despite being small, the village has an array of medical services. Though there are only a few doctors in practice, there are many other medical personnel, such as the deaconess nurses of the Angelica Clinic, the mantri that live in each village, the midwives, and the paraji (shaman midwives). Medical clinics * Angelica Clinic * Puskesmas Paterosari * Puskesmas Cirobi Convalescent homes * Panti Wreda Dara Merdeka * Sanatorium Sare Sehat Sinyo Schrijnemakers Flora and Fauna Flora Paterosari lies in a small valley at the foot of Mount Ciremai and the tropical climate of the mountainous areas befit mostly a coniferous biome, with pine trees mostly decorating the area. She-oaks are also present in great numbers. Banyan trees (the Indian fig, not the weeping fig) are present in many areas as well, but the largest concentration is in Taman Merak in Caraka Badiran, where it is known as Karaton Merak, because of the green peafowls that live in the area. Fauna The birds that became the name of the respective hamlets live in the area. The list and their respective areas as as follows: 1. Bar-winged prinias (prenjak) in Prenjakmulya 2. Green peafowls (merak) in Taman Merak 3. Slender-billed crows (gagak) in Taman Gagak 4. Milky storks (bangau) in Taman Bangau 5. Greater coucals (bubut besar) in Cibubut 6. Javan munia finches (emprit) in Panempritan Category:Places